Suspects in 5Pts. Beating Released

Vicki Strange embraces one of the teenagers originally accused of almost beating her son, Carter Strange, to death in June. “One of the kids part of the eight is changing his life. That’s a good thing.” That juvenile and another teen face probation but get to go home, after spending three months in jail, plus house arrest. A third former suspect, who also spent 90-days behind bars, and is on probation, says he’s learned a valuable lesson. “It’s been challenging but i’ve learned from it. I’ve learned that everyone’s not your friend and watch who you hang out with.” A fourth suspect is still in jail in connection with this case. A fifth teen who went before the judge wednesday requested he go home until a waiver hearing in February. The judge denied the request. The remaining three, older teens who face harsher charges, must stay in jail. Their lives intertwined with 18-year-old Carter Strange June 20th in Columbia’s downtown Five Points area. Police say the group of teens, shown on surveillance video, savagely beat Strange as he jogged home. While his physical wounds have healed, his mother says, psychological wounds may never disappear. “He judges people now by the color of their skin and that’s never how he was before.” The probationary conditions of the four juveniles released include, not communicating with each other, the strange family, not going to Five Points without adult supervision and no social media until otherwise indicated by the judge. Sentencing hearings for the remaining four are pending.